National Pop Lacrosse Tournament

The Lacrosse team travelled to Sheffield on Sunday to play at the National Pop Lacrosse Finals, representing Lincolnshire. Their first match got off to a quick start with an early goal from St Aidan’s putting St Hugh’s on the back foot. The team reacted quickly, with a quick pass from the centre to George, who directed the ball hard and accurately into the back of the net. Goals built up quickly after that, fantastic defending at the back from Martha and Louis to win the ball and send it up the wing to Charlie. Fantastic teamwork from St Hugh’s saw them beat St Aidan’s 9-4.

The second match saw St Hugh’s meet Hale Prep in their toughest match of the day. Keen to give them a competitive match, St Hugh’s worked hard to move the opposition around the pitch. Some fantastic defending from George prevented Hale from having an easy approach to goal. Despite capitalising on each goal scoring opportunity, the end result saw St Hugh’s lose 9-2 to Hale Prep.

The next match of the day was against Oldfield. Amazing communication between the St Hugh’s team mates saw them pass the ball accurately providing multiple goal scoring opportunities. A ball picked up by Freddie at the back was passed firmly to George, who sprinted past the opposition, releasing to Charlie who shot, missing the goal by millimetres. Esme was quick to react, scooping the ball from the floor and turning onto her reverse to slip the ball firmly into the back of the net; a brilliant team goal. The end result was 7-2 to St Hugh’s.

The final game of the morning saw St Hugh’s meet Gawsworth. Hoping for another win, St Hugh’s were quick off the mark, putting the opposition under pressure. One ball from Alice in the far corner saw Charlie receive, sprint and perform a fantastic roll dodge around a Gawsworth defender leaving the goal open. A simple overhead shot saw the ball move smoothly into the back of the net. Gawsworth stepped up their play after this, attacking hard towards their goal. The final result stood at 7-4 to Gawsworth.

Going into the afternoon, St Hugh’s were pleased to have made it to the Plate tournament after coming third in their group. St Hugh’s met East Bridgford in their most evenly matched game of the day. The opposition scored an early goal following the starting whistle, putting St Hugh’s on the defensive. Winning back possession, St Hugh’s worked the ball between players pushing through the defence. Beautiful communication between Charlie and Esme saw the ball fly between them, opening up the playing area and leaving the goal free for a firm shot into the net to even the score. East Bridgford returned with a fierce attack, shooting hard towards goal. The scoreline continued to move up in an even manner, St Hugh’s overtaking East Bridgford to make the score 5-4. The opposition worked hard to equalise, and in the final 30 seconds of the game succeeded in powering through the St Hugh’s defence, receiving a penalty. With 5 seconds left on the clock, East Bridgford sprinted towards goal and scored, resulting in a 6-5 loss for St Hugh’s.

Fantastic teamwork and determination from St Hugh’s was seen throughout the day. The whole team should be extremely proud in their achievement; a great day of sport enjoyed by players and parents alike. Well done!